Bobby Durango of Rock City Angels Passes Away

Bobby Durango, lead singer of Rock City Angels, who recorded for Geffen in the late-1980s, has passed away. Details of the death were not disclosed.

Rock City Angels got their start in South Florida before moving to Los Angeles in the mid-’80s after signing with New Renaissance Records. The band rarely had a steady lineup for long periods of time, and once had actor Johnny Depp before he got his big break as an actor on the TV show ’21 Jump Street.’ While they were working on their debut album, Geffen bought their contract, scrapped the record and sent them down to Memphis to start over. The result was 1988′s ‘Young Man’s Blues,’ which featured the single ‘Deep Inside My Heart.’

The band broke the news to its fans this afternoon via their Facebook page with the following message:

The Rock City Angels are no stranger to rumors. There is no shortage of outlandish tales attributed to the band that, while entertaining and bizarre, are just patently untrue. We wish we could tell you all that the most recent story circling around was just another fabrication … another rock n’ roll tall tale. We can’t. Yesterday we received the shocking news that our founder, singer and beloved brother Bobby Durango passed away.

Whether you knew Bobby in the flesh, only knew him online or just listened to his music, all of our lives are emptier today without him. And as for those rumors we talked about earlier, even we don’t know all of the details yet, so out of respect for his family it would be greatly appreciated if we could all refrain from posting any personal theories about the circumstances and instead celebrate the man’s life. He certainly left us an amazing soundtrack.

The Rock City Angels (all members, past and present)

As was referenced in the band’s statement, there is much speculation and blame thrown about as to why the album was not successful – and it’s possible the true story will never come out – and they were soon dropped by the label.

Rock City Angels regrouped years later and, in 2000, put out the original record, with several others following over the past decade. Most recently, the band were working on a new album, ‘Devils in the Countryside,’ which they described on their Facebook page as a “slice of psychedelic spaghettiwesternesque rock’n'roll.” The band had hoped to have it out by the end of the year.